Automatic dispenser for liquids



Dec. 23, lgfla HERBST ET L '1,786,302

AUTOMATIC DISPENSER FOR LIQUIDS Filed Feb. 29, 1925? A 7- rokwf rPatented Der..l 23, 1930 lUNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ERNST HERBST lANDHANS IKOHLIIEIR,y F HOBOKEN, NEW JERSEY AUTOMATIC DISPENSER FOR LIQUIDSApplication filed February 29, 1928. Serial No. 257,892.

by which the apparatus may be set to dispense with they exact quantityof fuel, corresponding, at the market value of the day, to the valueofthe inserted coin.

Fourth-To facilitate the withdrawal of several coins value of fuel at atime.

Fifth.-To measure the next quantity of fuel while onequantity'iswithdrawn.

We attain/these objects-be the mechanism 29o illustrated in theaccompanying drawing, in

which a sectioned side elevation of our improved dispenser is shown.lThe electrical parts are inserted diagrammatically. Similar numeralsrefer to similar parts thruout the drawing.

The parts of our improvement are accommodated in housing .1, whichrepresents a full enclosure arising from a suitable base 2. By way ofpipes 3 and 4, the liquid 5 is to pumped from storage tank 6, which islocated below the base, through a suitable pump, 7, driven by electricmotor 8, to the measuring tank 9. Tank 9 is mounted above Athedispensing tank 10 and is connected to it by'a cock 11 which is operatedby the electric relay 12. When this relay is energized the cock isclosed, as shown; normally it is held open by gravity, due to the weightof leverY 13 which may be supplemented by suitable 4o spring tension. Tothe elbow outlet atvthe lowest point of the dispensing tank 10, 14, istted the hose 15, which is slung over the sheave 16 slidably arranged onwall bracket 17. The hose terminates in the nozzle 18 with handcock 19.

At the point where the nozzle. passes through the wall of housing 1, ithas a groove'20 on f the outside, which, in the position shown,

lines up with a hole 21 in hub 22 on the inside of the housing. When rod23, which slidably lits that hole, is down, it engages that groove andlocks the nozzle in position. At the same time, the handle of cock19 islocked in the closed position, since it rests on a rim 24 on the insideof hole 25, countersunk from the -outside of housing 1 into the hub 22.But

in the figure the rod 23 is shown disengaged .from groove 20, and thenozzle may be gripped at the neck 26, and the hose 15may be pulled outof the housing, sheave16 sliding along bracket 17, against the reactionof the counterweight 27; this weight, by means of rope 28 running overpulley 29, is attached to the backy of fork 30, which is hinged upon theshaft of sheave 16.

The upper end of rod 23 is hinged to lever 31. rlhat lever is fulcrumedto the wall of the tank 9 and operatively connected to the rod 32 whichis slidably guided by the tubular extension 33 on tank 10. tcarries, atthe 'lower end a ball loat34 which when submerged, as shown, has atendency to rise and by means of the lever connection, holds up the rod23' so that its end clears the groove 20. But when that tank 10 isempty, the weight of the parts hinged to lever 31 pulls. down rod 23 sothat its end rests, through the hole 21, upon hose 15 or nozzle 18, andwill drop into the groove 20 when the hose is pulled all the way intothe housing, by Weight 27, as shown., 1

Fulcrumed at 35 in the Wall of tank 9, is an angle lever 36 with arms 37and 38. Arm 37 terminates in ball float 39, and the other arm.` 38carriesat the end an extension 40 which is bent in an arc concentricaround ulcrum 35. 'llhat lever arm 38 has also, extending fromv itsside, a round hub 41, threaded on the inside, into which its a screwwith'knurled head 42 and a nut 43 at the other end, by which it islocked in position. Head 42, extendin up to edge 44, is counterbored tofit over hu 41, whereby this part obtains the appearance of a micrometeradjustment.

The liquid rising in measuring tank 9 raises 95 loall ioat 39, swinginglever 36 clockwise, so that head 42 moves in an essentially horizontaldirectionto the left until it strikes lever 45, which is one of the arms45 andy 46 of aan angle lever .which'represents a switch of the type oftoggle switches, by which the current is snappe on when the lever isturned in clockwise direction, and turned off when the lever swings theopposite way. In the drawing, for simplicitys sake, ,the lever is shownas making and breaking the current directly, at the point where it restsupon contact point 47. The dotted line indicates the switch in o penposition (48). This switch controls the current in motor 8, i. e. thepumping operation is stopped when the head 42 strikes lever 45, moves itover to the left and shuts oi the current.

B adjusting'head 42 over or away from the ub 41, the shutting olf of thecurrent is caused to occur later or sooner respectively, and,respectively, more or less liquid is pumped into the measuring tankbefore the current is shut olif. Therefore the settin of the head 42regulates the quantity of uel measured olf into the measuring tank.

. In the arrangement of the scale on hub 41 it is assumed that, for thisparticular machine, the coin by which the mechanism is to be set intovmotion is to be a'quarter, 25.

' If the market price of the fuel per unit is 25,

the head 42 is adjusted,-in micrometer fashion,-to division point 25,and, after one unit is measured olf in the measuring tank 9, the pumpingoperation stops, upon the breaking of the current in the mannerdescribed above. If the unit price is 32, the head is accordinglyadjusted, (position of the drawing) and 1ess liquid than before ispumped into the measurin tank. The scale is arranged so that thisquantity is 2,5/32 of a unit, which is the quantity worth 25 at a marketprice of 32 per unit. Correspondingly the rest of the' scale is arrangedso that with the respective settings a corresponding amount of llquid ispumped into the measuring tank, before the pumping motor is shut off. Bythe stopping of the pump in the pipe line, the back flow of liquid fromthe dispensing tank into the originaly storage reservoir 6 is prevented.The ligure X of a certain market price is marked olf onthe scale, at thepoint where under the respective setting, the current is shut off afterthe fraction 25 'divided by X of a unit has been pumped into themeasuring tank.

Normally, when relay 49 is not energized and when extension 40 on lever36 is swung over to the right, tension spring 50, on lever 51, which isrotable around fulcrum 52, pulls that lever to itsv extreme position incounter-clockwise direction. In that position of lever 51, the end ofits arm 53 rests against lever arm 46 keeping that switch closed at`47,and the third lever arm 54 clears the slot 55 of the coin mechanism, sothat a coin inserted by the operator at entrance 56 will strike thelever 58, pivoted in 59, at the end of its lower arm 57, which normallyis 1n the extreme position in clockwise direction, (arm 57 blocking theslot), due to the weight of its horizontal arm with the pole piece 60,facing relay 49.

When arm 57 of lever`58 is thus struck by the coin, (the operation whichstarts the operation of the machine), it is swung into the positionshown in the drawing, and the coin drops into the coin receiving box 6l.The lever does however not drop back in clockwise direction, but sinceit has closed the electric circuit by touching contact point 62 wherebyall electric devices of our apparatus are energized, the attractionofpole piece 60 by relay 49 holding the lever 58 in the position shown.That relay also attracts the pole piece on lever 51 so that arm 54enters upon slot 55 and blocks such coins 63 which had been insertedinto the slot, after .the mechanism had been set into operation by therst coin.

The source of electric current, by which the apparatus is to beoperated, is applied at terminals 64 and 65. That source may be anelectric lighting or power system, or a set of batteries formlng part ofthe apparatus, might be utilized to energize a fractionalhorse-powermotor 8 which would have but small current consumption; the latterarrangement is of advantage where our fuel dispenser is set up at anisolated spot, far removed from a public or private electric powersupply.

Having set the mechanism of our improvement into operation, as explainedabove, electric contact at 62 closes the circuit in all the lines 66,which comprises all the electric apparatus in series connection. Therockable switches or contact members, made up of arms 45 and 46, and 57and 58, respectively, are incorporated in the circuit of the conductor66, by having that conductor connected to the respective pivots uponwhich these switches'are mounted. In addition to relay 49 relay 12 isenergized, closing cock 11,

motor 8 is started up and the pump fills tank 9 with fuel. At this timethere is no fuel in the tank 10, in all other respects the apparatus ishowever, at this stage of the operation, in the position shown in thedrawing.

When the quantity of fuel corresponding l1 to the value of the coin hasbeen pumpe into the tank 9, ball float 39 has turned lever 36 so far inclockwise direction, that head 42, striking 45, opens the circuit at 47,whereby the two relays are de-energized and the motor comes to a stop.Tomake this stop instantaneous, so that no additional fuel is pumpedinto the measuring tank, a brake is provided on the motor, as .commonlyknown in the art of electric power drives. Relay 12 has released thecock lever, so that the cock 11 is open and the quantity of fuelmeasured before, drains into dispensing tank 10, lifts float 34, andthus rod 23 disengages from groove 20, so that the operator can luf)'IRO

withdraw the nozzle from the housing, and draw fuel from the dispensingtank 10 by the operation of cock 19. When all the contents of that ytank have been drained, rod 23 comes down and rests upon the hose 15. Itwill slide along the surface of that hose and the connecting nozzle,when theI operator has let go the end of the nozzle, and hose and nozzleare pulled back into the housing by the counterweight 27, and, in theend, the end of the rod will engage the groove 20 and lock the nozzle inplace. y

When the circuit was opened, the relay 49 released levers 51 and 58;whereas the latter drops into its position of rest, the former is heldin the position of the drawing, piece 40 at the end of lever 36intercepting the arm 53, thus preventing the return of that lever intoits nor-mal position. But while the fuel drains from tank 9 into tank10, float 39 follows its top level, and piece 40 swings to the right dueto the counter-clockwise rotation of lever 36. When the tank 9 has beenvcompletely drained, piece 40 has swung so far over to the right, thatthe end of lever 53 trips over theend of that piece 40, striking lever46, which then is in the position 48, and swinging it in clockwisedirection, until it comes to a stop with the circuit closed at 47.Simultaneously the lever arm 54 has been withdrawn from the coin slot,and the next coin 63 is released, starting the operation of themechanismanew. 0f4 course, the fuel does not have to be drawn from thedispensing tank each time a quantity of fuel has been discharged into itfrom the measuring tank, but several such quantities of fuel may be heldby it before the' 'operator withdraws them; he being at liberty to do soas long as there is fuel enough'in the tank'lO to keep the rod 23disengaged from groove 20.

',Ihe coin-mechanism may be provided with protective devices of the typecommonly eknown to those familiar with the art of automatic deviceswhich serve to prevent the use of slugs, or the use of other fraudulentmeans, for the withdrawal of fuel .from our improved dispenser. y

A plurality Aof coin mechanisms and measurmg levers may be used 1ncombinatlon on our dispenser, to allow the use of different coins, andto measure oft correspondingly different quantities of fuel.

The part sectioned Iaway from the side of the housing 1 in the drawingis provided with one or more suitable doors, through which access to theinside of the apparatus may be had for the setting of the measuringadjustment, withdrawal of the coin, or attendance to the motor or pump.

Such protection against the collection of y explosive vapors in thetopof the: housing 1, as lmay be required by common sense or `safety codes,can -readily be provided for by suitable vents or other Ventilatingprovisions.

Ball iioat 34 may be arranged'. in such a way as to normally seat uponoutlet 14, thus closing that outlet. This would prevent the occurrenceof an explosion in the tanks, if

accidentally the fuel or its-gas had been set on tire at the spout ofnozzle. But cock 19 -provides suilicient protection" against suchpossibilities, and we prefer to have the ball ioat clear the outlet atall times, so that the fuel may be completely drained from that tank.Similarly, we prefer to have float 39, at its lowest position, fit intosuitable hemispherical pocket in the bottom of-tank 9, drained towardsthe cock 11, and to have 53 trip over 40 accordingly, so that tank 9 isnormally empty.

We claim: p

1. In combination'with the apparatus described, a housing completelycovering said y apparatus, and having a hole therein, a dispensinghosepassing through said hole, a shiftablesheave in said housing, over whiahpasses said hose, means pulling. said sheave awayfrom said hole andmeans normally locking said hose in said hole.

2. In combination with the apparatus described, a housing completelycovering said.

hole and connected on one end to the bottom of said tank, a cock lon theend of said hose, means forpulling said hose into said housing, a lioatin said dispensing tank and means operatively connected to said floatfor locking said hose and said cock in the wall of said housing.

4. In combination with the apparatus de-v scribed, a housing completelycovering saidg apparatus and 'having a hole therein, a d1s pensing hosepassing-through said hole, a shiftable sheave in said housing, overwhich passes said hose, means pulling said sheave away from said hole,and means normally and automatically locking said hose in said hole andautomatically unlocking said hose therefrom.

5.v In combination with the apparatus described, a housing completelycovering said apparatus and having a hole therein, a dispensing hosepassing through said hole, a'.

shiftable sheave in said housing, over which passes said hose, meanspulling said sheave away from said hole, and oat actuated means normallyand automatically locking said hose in said hole and automaticallyunlocking said hose therefrom.

6. In combination with the apparatus described, a housing completelycovering said apparatus and having a hole therein, a dis'- pensing hosepassing through said hole, a shiftable sheave in said housing, overwhich passes said hose, means pulling said sheave away from said hole, anozzle at the end of said hose, a normally closed cock on said nozzle,and means normally and automatically locking said cock in said housing.

7. In combination with the apparatus described, a housing completelycovering said apparatus and having a hole therein, a dispensing hosepassing through said hole, a shiftable sheave in said housing, overwhich passes said hose, Weight actuated means pulling said hose awayfrom said hole, a nozzle on the end of saidhose, a cock on said nozzle,l and means -normally and automatically locking saidnozzle and said cockin said housing.

8. In combination with the apparatus described, a pump, a motorconnected tosaid pump, a measuring tank connected to said pump, adispensing tank connected to said measuring tank, a housing coveringsaid apparatus and having a hole therein, a. dispensing hose connectedto said dispensing tank l and passing through said hole, a shii'tableCil' sheave in said housing, over which passes said hose, means pullingsaid sheave away from said hole, and means normally and automaticallylocking said hose in said hole until apredetermined quantity of measuredliquid has flowed into said dispensing tank, and automatically unlockingsaid hose upon the How into said dispensing tank of said measuredpredetermined quantity of liquid.

9. In combination with the apparatus described, a housing enclosing saidapparatus and having an opening therein, a dispensing hose, passingthrough said opening, shifting means Within said housing engaging saidhose to draw said hose within said housing, and means normally andautomatically locking said hose within said housing.

10. In combination with the apparatus described, a housing enclosingsaid apparatus and having an opening therein, a dispensing hose passingthrough said opening, shiftable means within said housing engaging saidhose to draw said hose Within said housing, a nozzle on said hose, anormally closed cock on said nozzle, and means normallyl andautomatically locking said nozzle and cock with# in said housing.

11. In combination with the apparatus described, a housing enclosingsaid apparatus and having an opening therein, a dispensing tank, a hosepassing through said opening` and connected to said dispensing tank, anormally closed cock in said hose, means to draw said hose into saidhousing, a float in said dispensing tank, and means operatively c011-nected to said ioat to automatically lock said hose and cock relativelyto said housing.

12. In combination with a dispenser of the kind described, a ump, anelectric motor, connected with sai pump, a measuring tank connected tosaid pump, a Hoat in said measuring tank, a circuit breaker in thecircuit of said motor, a lever connected to said float, and anadjustable stop on and o erated by said lever to actuate said circuitreaker to break said circuit, and a spring operated and pressurerestrained lever to actuate said circuit breaker to close said circuit.

13. In combination with a dispenser of the kind described, a pump, lanelectric motor, connected with said pump, a measuring tank connected tosaid pump, a oat in said meas uring tank, a circuit breaker in thecircuit of said motor, a lever connected to said oat, and an adjustablestop on and operated by said lever to actuate said circuit breaker tobreak 'said circuit, and a lever releasable by said first, mentionedlever to automatically actuate said circuit breaker to close saidcircuit.

14. In combination with a dispenser of the kind described, a pump, anelectric motor connected with said pump, a measuring tank connected tosaid pump, a float in said measuring tank, a dispensing tank connectedto said measuring tank, a lever operated circuit breaker in the circuitof said motor, a rockable lever connected to and actuated by said float,and an adjustable stop -operatively mounted on said rockable lever,adapted to engage said lever of said circuit breaker and actuate saidlever to break said circuit.

15. In combination with a dispenser of the kind described, a pump, anelectric motor connectcd with said pump, a measuring tank connected tosaid pump, a float in said meas- .uring tank, a dispensing tankconnected to said measuring tank, a float in said dispensing tank, meansto drain said dispensing tank, means actuated by said dispensing tankfloat to lock said tank draining means against operation, a leveroperated circuit breaker in the circuit of said motor, a rockable leverconnected to and actuated by said float in said measuring tank, and anadjustable stop operatively mounted on said rockable lever,

adapted to engage said lever of said circuit breaker and actuate saidlever to break said circuit.

16. In combination with a dispenser of the kind described, a pump, anelectric motor,

`connected with said pump, a measuring tank connected to said pump, afloat in said measuring tank, a dispensing tank connected t0 saidmeasuring tank, a normally closed valve in the circuit of said motor fordraining said measuring tank into said dispensing tank automaticallyopened by the stopping of said motor and automaticallyclosed by thestarting of said motor, a fioat in said measuring tank, a 'circuitbreaker in the circuit of said motor, a lever connected to said float,an adjustable stop on and operated by said lever to actuate said circuitbreaker to break said circuit, and a lever releasable by said rst.mentioned lever to automatically actuate said circuit breaker to closesaid circuit, whereby said motor and pump are automatically stopped andstarted and said valve is automatically, simultaneously, and synchroi Inously opened and closed.

17. In combination with a. dispenser of the kind described, a pump, anelectric motor connected with said pump, a measuring tank,

connected with said pump, a float in said measuring tank, a dispensingtank connected to'said measuring tank, a gravity opened'andelectro-magnetically and normally closed valve in the circuit of saidm'otor for draining within said housing and connected to said pump, adispensing tank within said housing and connected to said measuringtank, means for automatically stopping said pump after it has pumped afixed quantity of liquid into said measuring tank, means forautomatically draining said measuring' tank into said dispensing tankafter sald pump has been stopped, and means preventing actuation of saidpump while said tank is being drained. v

Signed at'NeW York, .in the county and State of New York, this 18th dayof Februi ary, A. D. 1928.

ERNST HERBST. HANS KOHLER.

said measuring tank into said dispensing tankl 18. In combination with adispensing ap;-1

paratus of the kind described, a housing substantially enclosing saidapparatus, a pump, an electric motor connected. with and actuating saidpump, a measuring tank within said housing and connected to said pump, aiioat in said measuring tank, a dispensing tank within said housing andconnected to said measuring tank, a lever-operated circuit breaker inthe circuit of said motor, an adjustable stop operatively connected tosaid float,

said lever on said circuit breaker being interposed in the path of saidstop.

19. In combination with a dispensing apparatus of the kind described, ahousing sub-l stantially enclosing said apparatus, an electricallydriven pump, a measuring tank within said housing and connected to saidpump, a dispensing tank within said housing and connected to' saidmeasuring tank, means for automatically stopping said pump'after it haspumped a fixed quantity of liquid into said measuring tank, and meansfor automatically draining said measuring tank intov said dispensingtank after said pump has been stopped.

20. In combination with a dispensing apparatus of the kind described, ahousing sub'-v stantially enclosing said apparatus, anelectricallydriven pump, a measuring tank

